Moonage Daydream
by madhubantide
Summary: For once outside her shell, Dina develops a friendship with the Marauders when they join forces against a particular Slytherin. What she doesn't calculate for, however, is the interest a certain someone displays, or is she just imagining that vaguely wolfish grin over breakfast?
1. Muddles, Mooning and Some Mistakes

Chap 1

" _What on earth is wrong with you, Padfoot? You could have effing hurt yourself!"_

" _And I suppose it is no pleasure to you at all to be graced with my company here-"_

" _No, I had a lot to do before you got all-"_

" _Of course then, mate, never trying to bail you out of intense boredom again-"_

" _Oi! Could the two of you just effing shut your trap for a moment? I'm trying to sneak out of this place and if Pomfrey hears me or what the two of you are up to, we're all toast"._

Geraldine- Dina to her friends, of course, who would ever want to carry around the burden of a name like Geraldine, what was mother thinking- was fuming in the backseat of her car while her mother fumed in front. Her father was trying his hardest to dispel all the tension, the poor dear, but he wasn't succeeding so well, and the past hour or so he'd been at the receiving end of a few jibes from either end. He tried again a few minutes later.

"So, Jerry, honey-"

"Dad. You know I don't like to be called that, it's dreadfully common and makes me feel somewhat like a dog."

"Sorry, dear. Just wanted to ask you what you were planning for your courses this semester and what you think about the holidays and our vacation, I really do have to look to find accommodation…"

"Could we stop talking about the holidays for a while, please? I do plan to do a lot this term, so I really don't know when I will be able to make it back home for a vacation in the south of France, or wherever it is-"

"I told you not to ask her again; can't you see? She doesn't want to come home to her parents anymore. It's that awful school, that great big dirty castle she'd rather stay in than come home to go somewhere nice with us. When has she ever cared about what we want?" Her mother had finally turned away from the window. Having delivered this diatribe, however, she went back to staring stonily out of it again, occasionally adding the odd sniffle for dramatic effect.

 _Oh, well, I suppose it IS only another hour to the station,_ thought Dina as she settled into her seat. _Might as well get comfortable._

"Bye, Dad! Bye, Mum! I'll write, see you soon. Don't forget to say hi to Aunt May for me, and tell her I'll be sending her all the gossip from school!"

Dina hurried off into the steam and the bustle of the student, standing on the tips of her toes to locate her friends, who dammit, she couldn't see anywhere at all with all these immensely tall people crowding her vision and oh dear, was that John, she had hoped to avoid him entirely-

And, whooff, a solid something, quite a lot taller than her and with a considerable number of bags, hit her, as did a subsequent volley of words.

"Dina, you BIG BALL OF DAMNABLE CUTENESS! Where have you been all summer? I have SO much to tell you! Have you seen any of the others yet? I thought I saw Toni, top of a black head and a bow sneaking off somewhere, probably with yet another one of those boys, the never-ending parade truly is quite that- you though, what have you been doing all summer that you didn't reply to most of my mail except with perfunctory replies?" Marlene finally stopped to take a huge breath, and flicked her blonde bangs out of her eyes, and Dina took this chance to break into the monologue.

"Marl, you prat, I did write to you last week. You seemed to have dashed off a vague reply about some pudding or the other your mother was making and you had to rush to finish before someone else got to it. But oh, I've missed you. And there, I see Toni! HEY, we're here!"

Toni headed over to them, glancing back and waving to someone just outside their line of vision. From her smile and the absolute smoothness of her glossy black hair, not a hair out of place, Dina knew something was up.

"So, Toni, who's the new boy then? Something serious?"

"Oh, please. You know me, Dina. I don't do serious. Just a bit of snogging and such. And Marlene, stop with those bangs, you look positively demented, or like a very sweet Pomeranian."

"Oh, well. Then I seem to have achieved what I was setting out for", said Marl, with a grin and a wave, and disappeared into the train with her trunk.

"We'll have to rush, Toni, I really want to get a carriage ourselves, and not sit with those Slytherins like last time, that was incredibly uncomfortable."

"Yes, one of them drew you into an argument, didn't he? You have to admit that he must have been saying something really stupid for you, of all people, to speak up in front of a group of strangers, and strangers from another house, at that."

"It really was. I think he had quite a lot to say about how the best music of the last decade was all-male. What an absolute arse, could hardly let me finish my sentences-"

"Oh, hey, there's Lily! Hold on, Dina, I'll be right back", and Toni had disappeared with a wave into the crowd. Dina could see Lily, though, she was right at the front, valiantly ignoring the admiring looks that prat Potter was throwing at her. She really had to give it to Lily, though. Avoiding a boy that insistent and that popular (read: arse to absolutely everyone but his three buddies) must really take some mettle, and she heard enough from Toni about how entirely annoying Potter could be when he got going. At least they played some good pranks sometimes.

Dina hauled her luggage onto the train, huffing a little. She always had luggage that was just a bit heavier than she could manage, and getting that trunk onto the train was a struggle.

"Hey, hold on, let me help you." There was suddenly a pair of capable looking arms holding up one end of her trunk from inside the train.

Dina brushed her brown hair out of her eyes and looked up to see a pair of kind green eyes looking at her out of a face she knew only too well.

"Oh, hi, Lupin, no it's alright, I'll manage, don't-"

"Don't worry, it's not too heavy, I'm sure we could do it together." And before Dina could protest some more, they had hauled her trunk into the carriage.

"Um, thanks. I wish they would allow…"

"Muggle suitcases, right? They're far easier to carry than these trunks", Lupin stood up and dusted his hands off, looking straight at her. Dina tried not to blush, seriously, what was wrong with her?

"You use Muggle suitcases?"

"Yes, well, my mom is a Muggle, albeit a strange one", he smiled, the edges of his eyes crinkling and settling into unfamiliar lines. Dina had hardly spoken to him before this, and the effect of his eyes combined with that smile was just a little unsettling, and so she looked at his arms, where he'd rolled up his sleeves to assist her. His broad forearms were sprinkled with strange marks and small scars, and before she could ask, he had whipped his arms out of sight and covered them up with his sweater. Come to think of it, she had never seen his arms before either.

"Er, well, I should get going, I guess, um, got to go see my friends", she stuttered.

"Sure, say hi to Lily for me if you run across her!" And he had gone into another compartment, which let off a cloud of strange green smoke when he opened the door.

Shaking her head at the antics of the four Gryffindor boys, Dina headed for an empty coach. She had to find Toni and tell her about the mystery of Remus Lupin's scarred- but very fit- forearms. The knowledge of the green eyes and the crinkling at their edges, though, she decided to keep to herself as entirely unnecessary detail.

"Why, Lily, you absolutely must enlighten us poor virgins all about that fit neighbor of yours. You never said in your letters that he had the most scrumptious body". Dina shook her head yet again. So much for finding peace in this compartment. _One would think that Ravenclaws (allowing for one Gryffindor), at least, would have some peace and quiet around, but no, Toni would never let that happen._ She settled more comfortably into her corner, grinning into her book, amused at Lil's obvious discomfiture.

"Ah, well, you know, he wasn't all that great… we only shared a few records and met over coffee once-"

"Oh, Lily, you bore. Why don't you ever do more than that? What about you, Dina? Any news over the summer?"

"No, you prat. I already told you. Went on yet another holiday with my parents and if there were any chance of hooking up on that train, believe me, it would have avoided me like the plague. I only ended up taking lots of photographs that I'm planning to develop once we get to school, if this train ever gets there, that is."

"It's all fine, Dina. You know Hogwarts doesn't keep to 'Dina Time'," Lily was getting up and dusting the biscuits off her sweater. "I have to get into my robes. See you all after dinner, bye!"

"Well, I guess that means we should get moving as well. Get your arse off my notebook, Antoinette Ruthers. And where on earth is Marl? I haven't seen her since we got on the train. I do hope she isn't lost somewhere."

"As likely as that would be, I think she's found someone that's taken her interest a little more than her Ravenclaw pals. Now, now, Dina, let's not get all jealous."

A well-aimed Chocolate Frog landed on Toni and bounced off her head.

 _I'm so glad to be back with these idiots. Now if only we would get to the feast sooner._

By the time they got to the feast, Dina knew why Marl had not made an appearance before. Her face was red and she looked like she'd been crying. Dina and Toni exchanged a look before they ran after her as she disappeared behind a tapestry.

"Hey, Marl, wait, we need to talk to you!"

"Yeah, don't make us run, we're not all fit like all those Quidditch players you lust after-"

Toni gasped. She'd caught up to Marl first and saw the large bruise on her cheek.

"What happened to you, Marl? You disappeared on the train, and now this-"

"Could you just leave me alone right now? Please."

Dina had caught up by now. They appeared to be in an abandoned corridor somewhere on the third floor. She caught Toni and Marlene firmly by the elbows and led them to a classroom. Once they were all sitting, she spoke.

"Marl, this has been happening for a while now. I don't want to ask you what it was this time because I have the same advice for you as the last time, leave that Slytherin bastard and let him rot in whatever depths he likes stewing in. This is getting out of hand."

Marl looked at the two of them, her face still tear-stained. "But he apologized, he, he said he would do better, and it was all fine before I told him I met James over the summer, and he started going off at me about how I could possibly talk to him, and what an inflated head he has, and before I knew it, he was accusing me of going behind his back and snogging James, and I couldn't, I just don't-"

"Oh, Marl." Toni moved forward to hug her. She looked at Dina. They both knew this wasn't the last time they would be comforting their friend over Avery.

 _That bastard. If there is anyone I could hurt with magic, it would be him._ Dina's silent rant to herself was interrupted by Marl again.

She hiccupped before she began and then forced out the next few words. "James, Sirius and Remus turned up while- you know. And they got into a nasty fight. Remus was taken to the hospital wing- o, oh this is all my fault!" And she burst into fresh tears.

 _Remus Lupin. I'd forgotten about him, and somehow in the flurry on the train, I didn't even mention our chance encounter. I wonder why, and I wonder why a pair of kind eyes is- no, stop._ "So… what are we doing about this, then, Toni?"

"Let's speak to the others. That bloody arse is going down."


	2. Trouble at the Tower

Chap 2

" _Geraldine?" A smooth voice came out of the dark. "What are you even doing here still?"_

" _I came to keep Toni some company and then snuck under the bed and hid there when Pomfrey came to lock up. Now shush, I have to leave."_

" _Why leave, Adams? Stay, I'm sure we could work out some sort of arrangement with the beds-"_

" _Oi, Padfoot. Shut up. Let her leave," a flustered second voice came out of the dark. "There's a door about twenty paces to your left, Dina. Leave before this arse actually gets you in trouble, as he seems quite efficient at this."_

 _Furious whispering ensued while Dina slipped away._

"Oh, hi, Toni. So, I've been thinking," Dina sat down at the breakfast table and thunked her notebook down next to her. "I have a detailed plan that I was just filling Lily in on."

Lily wiped some ketchup off her face and opened the notebook. "So. The plan is that we get Marl to ask Avery to come to the Astronomy Tower. Once there-"

"Toni will be waiting in the shadows and cast her Bat Bogey Hex. This is where the boys come in. Because let's not deceive ourselves, we need their resources. Lily, you said something about a map."

"Yes, so Remus told me about this map they made which they can use to locate the rest of Avery's goons. Potter and Black will then be happy enough to take over- well- distracting them for the time being."

"And then I perform the Body Bind Curse on Avery, while also keeping a lookout for Macnair or any others who might get past Potter, Lupin and Black, while Pettigrew keeps an eye out for Filch or any professors who decide to go on a night stroll," Dina crammed some eggs into her mouth as she spoke.

"And then Marl tells Avery that it is over between the two of them, and his shitty comments about her blood status are uncalled for and horrible, and if this went any further we were going to the Head, or the Ministry if required, because this qualifies as hate crime."

"And if that isn't a scary prospect for dear old Avery, we always have the threat of our own violence. With the boys' map, he'll never know when we're coming for him and his gang of miscreants." Lily got up and straightened her robes. "Alright, girls, I think this is a good plan. I'm going to go tell Remus the details so he can inform the rest of those idiots and hope that they don't bungle this."

"I'm guessing they won't," this came from Toni, who was lounging in her chair like it was a throne, her hair spread over the back of it. "You tell them it's a prank, and it will go off with a bang. And a prank pulled on the Slytherins, at that."

"Yes, I'd almost forgotten that special hate they reserve for Snape and his ilk. Speaking of which, Lily, how are things with him?"

"You know how they usually are." Lily scrunched up her face, looking angry and a little sad. "He keeps talking to me, and I really like talking to him, but then some nonsense comes up about him wanting to go to Hogsmeade with me, and I say no, and then it gets very strange because he sulks for days. Oh, and lately we've been having fights again because I told him I don't like Avery and Macnair and that bunch he's been hanging out with this year, that they're cruel. He took offence to that and asked me why I don't reserve my ire for Potter and Black. Anyway, there's nothing I can do. I think it's a bit of a failing friendship."

"Yes, there's only so long you can keep pandering to his childish crush on you because you feel some sort of obligation," Dina was thinking of John from last year and how long it had taken her to break that off even though she knew she didn't like him much at all after about the second nauseating evening at Madam Puddifoot's. She thought she would have drowned in the pink while being stifled by his insistent kisses. _I am so glad that is over._

Sirius, Remus, James and Peter were lounging near the Lake under their favourite tree. Remus was sitting with his back against the tree, nose buried in a fat volume concerning the evolving nature of wizard relations with Muggles. James was on his stomach, scanning the grounds lazily, presumably for targets to prank, or possibly Lily to moon after. Sirius was idly waving his wand and making the red-brushed leaves fly softly into Peter's open mouth as he dozed in the late afternoon sunlight. Peter kept waking up, mildly cursing Sirius and settling back more comfortably.

"So boys, what do you think of the plan?" Sirius ran a hand through his hair. Remus looked at him and smiled. He always did that when he was thinking. He probably also thought it made his slightly long hair brush his collar just a tad more gracefully. There were girls sitting across from them, and one exceptionally pretty boy from Hufflepuff, who looked particularly nice with the light glinting off his bronze hair.

"Well, I think it is a lovely one. I love the fact that we can tweak it a little to our own liking," James sat up, now fidgeting with the clasps on his bag.

Remus put his book down, marking the page with one of the leaves from the pile he'd made his seat on. "Tweaking is fine, but I do think we should have the finer details of this worked out better. So tomorrow night after dinner, we head to the dorm to get your cloak, James. At around ten, Lily gives us the signal and we head towards wherever the Slytherins are."

"Probably won't need the map, we could just follow the stink-"

"Thank you for your input, Padfoot. Next, we wait until Marl asks Avery to go with her and then Prongs and I distract Macnair and Snape-"

"Won't need the two of us, I could handle that greasy idiot with one hand tied behind my back. Once that's taken care of, Peter," he leaned over to poke him with a stick.

"Yes, yes. I go to the bottom of the Astronomy tower with the map and keep a lookout for anyone who happens by and cast a silencing charm on the area," and having said his bit, Peter rolled over and dozed again, his nose twitching a little.

"Well, that seems…simple. Now all we have to do is make sure Prongs here doesn't end up taking our wonderful Sev's nose right off his greasy face."

James grinned. It was a lovely afternoon, and they had a plan. Term was turning out well after all.

All through dinner the next day, Dina twitched impatiently in her seat, turning to look at Marl, checking if she was fine, and going over the plan to herself. Unfortunately, she was also going over the plan aloud, to make sure everyone around her heard the details yet again.

"So, when we're at the Tower, Toni, you're hidden behind the-"

"- the second telescope to the left, yes, Dina, we've gone through this about ten times already, and that is just this evening. Relax, if things are going to go wrong, they will anyway, and no matter how much you write in that notebook of yours, you can't control every detail!"

"Yes, yes, so you keep saying. I'm keeping a copy of that charmed parchment we had, so I can contact Lily when it is time."

"Yes, do, just cram some food into your mouth now and we can leave."

"Bugger you idiots, what the hell are you doing at this end of the corridor? Move, move, you need to be there when those four come through!" Remus was hurrying the boys and an apprehensive looking Marlene along. Marlene looked a little green, and noticing the way her fingers twisted in her robes, he drew her to the side. "You know, you could still tell us to stop whenever you think we should. If you feel like you are not ready…"

"I am. Or not. But I have to be. I've done this for long enough and this cannot go on. I have to face this and be done with it. I cannot go on pretending that love is what drives his cruelty." She gulped.

Remus scanned her face, and he saw that she looked scared, but determined. He squeezed her shoulder. "Here, have a bit of chocolate."

"Moony, get behind that wall, they're turning the corner!"

Up in the Astronomy tower, Dina was pacing relentlessly and counting the seconds while Toni lounged in her habitual pose in one of the more comfortable chairs in the room. "Where do you think they are? I factored in five minutes for Marl to get her with him, and it's been four, and I don't hear either of them."

"It's fine, Di, stop stressing. They'll be here soon."

Not a minute later, they heard steps on the stairs, and soon, Marl's voice raised to a teary pitch, mixed in with Avery's deep bass, telling her she should be happy he consented to touch a filthy Muggle-loving half-blood like her. Before he could get to next sentence, Toni was out of her chair with an almost equine grace and had performed an excellent Bat Bogey Hex. Marl stood stricken five paces from him, and Dina waited for him to be fully engaged in retaliating before she hit him with a well placed Body Bind curse that sailed in right under his wand arm. Avery froze, his limbs snapping together as his body crashed to the ground.

 _God, I hope Pettigrew put that Silencing Charm around the place, this sure is noisy._ She brushed the stray thought away and gestured Marl forward to speak to him as she and Toni settled into the shadows again, their wands trained on Avery. This was going to be a long conversation.

The relative calm of Marlene speaking to Avery was suddenly ruptured by the sound of running feet. Remus burst into the top of the Tower with James and Sirius close on his heels. Peter panted up the stairs behind them.

"We've incapacitated Snape and Macnair for now. But they're only out of the way for a maximum of fifteen minutes," he gasped out.

"Yes, and my dear brother is heading their way, so if he finds his idols on the floor charmed into growing all kinds of fuzzy tentacles on their mugs, I can wager the consequences will have to be faced. How many of you can run, and fast?" Sirius was smoothing his hair while speaking, looking a bit rumpled but still immaculately bored.

 _How on earth does that face never change?_ Dina piped up. "I think Marl and Toni can run, but I can perform a pretty good Disillusionment charm that will stand up to inspection, unless we run into Mrs. Norris."

The four Gryffindors exchanged a look and took a minute before they seemed to reach a consensus.

James cleared his throat a little awkwardly and then said gruffly, "There's no need for that. Sirius and I can get Marl back, Peter could go with the map and Toni and use one of the secret passages, and you and Remus could, um, share this cloak I have and that would buy us some time."

"A cloak?"

"Yes, well, an Invisibility Cloak. It's a pretty good one." James looked a little defensive and Dina decided not to pursue this line of enquiry.

"Sure. Let's get going, then."

James' cloak was a huge one, and neither Dina nor Remus were large people. But somehow the space under the cloak seemed just a little too small two minutes into their progress towards the Ravenclaw Common Room. Dina could hear every breath she took and each of Remus', and she was uncomfortably conscious of his strong, warm hand around her shoulders, holding the cloak in place. She was also unusually- but, she realized with a rush of blood to her cheeks- not entirely unhappy with this arrangement that required her to walk enveloped in his warmth, with her chin close to the hollow of his throat. A minute later, she thought perhaps conversation would be a better idea than considering the merits of leaning across that infinitesimal distance and-

"So, Dina. These are strange circumstances for us to be talking, really, for the first time". Remus had spoken, and his crisp whisper pierced what thoughts she'd been having, so she floundered for a while before she returned his remark with a weak giggle and a nod of assent. _Talk, you great big lump, what are you doing?_

"Uh, they are, I suppose. I've never really thought of speaking to you before, because Potter and Sirius seem like such-" _Oh no, no, no._

"Such idiots, I know. Believe me, they are, no one knows that better than me. They're lovable idiots, though, most of the time, and I don't think they mean too much harm for all their bluster. They have their hearts in mostly the right place."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be unkind at all, and your pranks are always top shelf, really spiffing stuff, you know. I quite appreciate the planning that went into disrupting the Potions class that one time when you had small vials strewed around the room that let out noisy fireworks at precisely the moment Slughorn was to give us our test. That was very well done, really."

"Thank you, I planned the timing myself, though the idea of the fireworks came from James and P- Sirius."

"I do appreciate good timing. And-" she'd tripped on a folds of her own robe, and Remus' arms went out to steady her. She caught a whiff of a fresh smell, like soap, and freshly cut grass, and it threw her off kilter before her brain caught up with her. " What I was saying was, that time you kept your mouths shut in all classes for about a month, that was hilarious, but I don't really think people understood why-"

"We've reached your common room." Remus was smiling down at her, and she wondered what it would feel like to reach out and brush his hair off his forehead.

"Goodnight, Remus."

"Goodnight, Dina. And I too, appreciate the mark of good planning and a plan well executed. Thank you for this evening." He grinned at her, a suddenly wolfish grin before he disappeared under the cloak. She turned to the brass knocker and didn't hear its question for several minutes, thinking about the particular shade of green of a certain someone's eyes.


	3. The Morning After

Chap-3

 _Dina sped along the corridors, her heart thudding, stopping whenever she heard a noise, or anything she imagined as a footstep. Turning a corridor into the fourth floor, she heard something that made her blood run cold._

 _Snape's voice, whispering, whimpering, as another voice, much deeper, said, "You have to. If you don't, you will have the Dark Lord to answer to, and his wrath will not be as easy to face as mine."_

 _Below the low rumbling of the second voice, which Dina recognized as Avery's, she could hear a fainter whimpering that didn't belong to Snape, that seemed in fact, to be a woman's voice. No, a girl's._

" _Please. Please, let me go. Just let me go, and I won't tell anyone what I saw."_

 _And then Dina heard a swift whooshing sound that seemed to stop all time._

"Crucio."

The next morning Dina woke up when a large mass landed on her. Not unused to Toni and her pillow throwing habits, she stayed under her blankets and mumbled. "Just a few more minutes, ok, Toni? Just wake me up in five minutes, and I'll go to the loo after you do."

"It isn't Toni, you jackass, it's me, Marl. Come to breakfast, and come now!"

Dina struggled out of the warm, encasing folds of her blanket. The sunlight was slanting in through the windows and falling on Marl as she stood with her back to the windows near Dina's bed, and she looked almost as if she was encased light. _Damn these blondes with their beautiful hair_ , thought Dina as she sat up. She felt anything but beautiful this morning, having not caught much sleep, what with strange dreams where she was being chased by some unidentifiable monster that she was shooting arrows at with hitherto unimagined skill, while someone next to her held her hand and ran through a rather red landscape. Shaking her head to clear the last bits of foggy sleep, Dina got out of bed.

"Why do I have to go to breakfast now? It's barely seven in the morning, this is inhuman. And what are you doing up and in my dorm right now?"

"Toni let me in, she's been up for hours practicing the piano in the Common Room. I just came to tell you guys that the Marauders- which is some sort of nickname those four idiots have for themselves that I have finally been authorized to tell you- are having an early morning celebration of last night's exploits."

"Probably because they were too tired to talk last night, let alone celebrate," Dina had moved to the bathroom and mumbled through the foam on her toothbrush.

"Doesn't matter, you daft bimbo! It means they've got enough food to feed a small army, and a lot of it is rather mysteriously tarts and pies and some candy from Honeydukes that would make even you pig out. Now, move!" Marlene pushed her into the shower and went to her wardrobe to pick clothes out for her. "I'm putting out your black slacks and one of those lovely loose T-shirts you seem to wear."

"Put out a scarf too, Marl. Be out in a second."

Dina soon rushed out of the bathroom, shivering as she put her clothes on. She always bathed in cold water, no matter what the weather, insisting it did her good and kept her from keeping warm all day. The others thought she was nuts, of course, but they had long since stopped asking. As she pulled her slacks on, adjusting the length absent mindedly with her wand, she looked at Marlene sitting by the window, now flipping through one of the books she had left on her bed. It was a Muggle saga titled Watership Down that at first look seemed to be a simple book written for children, but had a lot more hidden to it. Marlene seemed to be engrossed in the first few pages, and Dina smiled to herself. She already looked a lot happier than before, and calmer, none of the previous air of anxiety she'd always had surrounding her. Somewhat hesitant to disturb the picture she made, Dina tiptoed to the edge of her bed and picked up her camera. It was a Muggle find she prided herself on, that she had enchanted herself to suit her requirements so she could adjust it to the light. Now, she picked it up to her face as sneakily as she could and framed the picture she saw before she snapped the shutter, dispelling the quiet that had spread through the dorm.

"Oh, Dina, I wish you'd warned me, I'm sure I look like a right prat in my pyjamas and with my hair all like this."

"You look absolutely lovely. I'll hand you the photograph as soon as I develop it, and you'll see. Now let's go see about that food you were talking about." The two girls linked arms and strolled to the Common Room, where they found Toni, and soon, the three were on their way to the Gryffindor Common Room.

Once they had climbed through the portrait hole, a wonderful sight hit their eyes. The Marauders sat around a table on lots of plushy chairs, surrounded by cushions, while Lily sat there, grudgingly smiling at a joke Sirius was making, and a few other girls, one of whom was Dorcas, a blonde from Hufflepuff Dina had seen before. The table itself was groaning under the weight of at least two tarts, four or so pies, and steaming cups of chocolate and one sparkling jug of pumpkin juice. There also seemed to be a heap of candy next to where Remus was sitting, his brown hair slightly ruffled as he looked at his friends. He looked up when the three girls entered and sent a warm smile their way as James boomed out, "Welcome to the Gryffindor way of life, ladies! I bet you don't do it quite so well up in your huffy Tower. Now join us for this sumptuous feast that we have-"

"Oh, shut up, jackass." Sirius cut across James' eloquence and stood up to say hello to the girls, clearing space for them so they ended up quashed on some very comfortable seats on the ground, with Dina next to Sirius, Toni between her and Marl, and Marl next to Peter, who suddenly looked as though he'd rather be anywhere but next to Marl, blushing furiously as he scuttled to make space so his arms wouldn't knock against hers. Dina had always known he was painfully shy around people other than his friends, and she felt some sympathy for the boy, who looked a lot smaller than the others around him, overshadowed even by the quiet Remus, who exuded a sense of calm confidence that he lacked. She leaned across Toni and extended her hand to touch his knee. "Hi, Peter. That was a great job you did last night, I've almost never carried out a plan quite so successfully."

Before Peter could speak, though, Black had answered, "Wormtail's got quite a hand with the charms. We often say he should have ended up in Ravenclaw, and not here. He and Remus here do the fine work on the detailing of most of the pranks we've pulled off, you know."

Dina and Toni looked around at Peter, surprised. Both of them had guessed as much about the role Remus played in the group, but they hadn't guessed at Peter's talent; he mostly stayed hidden, becoming what seemed from outside the group the butt of the others' jokes. Now, he squirmed a little under their regard and smiled at them, a grin wider and more open than any Dina had ever seen him aim at people other than Remus. She smiled back, feeling nice to have learnt something new about him, finally seeing why these boys stuck with each other. Through the course of the breakfast, she saw how James was often kind to Peter too, his momentary noticing of Peter shining like the sun on Peter's face- the boy clearly held James and Sirius in awe. Sirius was conversing with Lily in a rare moment of seriousness, and talking to him seemed to brighten Lily up and make her more at ease with the world, her face more open than usual as she chucked Ice Mice at him. Remus and Toni were talking to each other, and both of them seemed to be having an intense conversation about Muggle music. _So he likes Muggle music too. Interesting._ Dina's eyes roved back to where Peter had been sitting, and to her surprise, he and Marl had begun to talk, both of them hesitating a little, but quite enthusiastically talking about the use of Charms when it came to cooking.

Dina felt a deep sense of contentment as she cut off a large slice of lemon pie and leaned back in her chair. Her camera was lying at her feet, but no charm and no technique could quite capture the quiet warmth and beauty of this scene. School was really, after all, a lot nicer than she had thought it would be this term.

After breakfast, Dina went to her classes that day quite satisfied with the food and the conversation she'd had. After classes, which were a bit light today, she planned to develop the photographs from the vacation she'd gone on, and the ones she'd taken in the morning. She glided along the corridors until she was brought rudely to a halt by Toni whispering in her ear.

"Look, there's Snape and Macnair. Fuck, they're coming towards us." Sure enough, the two boys were heading towards them with decidedly ugly looks on their faces. Macnair had his wand drawn out. Dina fingered her wand in her robes, ready to defend herself. Just then, McGonagall walked up to them. "Adams, Ruthers, help me with these books, will you? And you two, what are you doing here? Don't you have a class with Professor Slughorn now? Hurry up, move along, or I'll have to put you in detention and that won't be pleasant for anyone involved." She swept into the Transfiguration classroom, with Toni and Dina running after her, both quite relieved to see Macnair and Snape skulking off. They hadn't seen Avery around, thankfully.

"Thank goodness for McGonagall. It's a good thing the Slytherins are scared of her, at least." Toni was smoothing her hair carefully, something she always did after she'd had a bit of a fright.

"Yes, I'm not a little glad that we share just Charms and Care of Magical Creatures with them. If we saw them for the rest of the day, I'd probably run screaming out the door." They settled in for class, with the rest of the students filing in.

Black and Potter were nearly always late to class, and by now McGonagall was used to their antics, only raising an icy eyebrow when they stumbled into class ten minutes late, claiming research in the library as their excuse.

 _Research, my sainted uncle. I bet they were up to something._ Dina looked across at Remus to where he was sitting, and made a quizzical face at him. Curiosity had always been her weakness. He glanced across at her and shrugged, keeping an impassive face very carefully though his eyes were twinkling. McGonagall gave Dina a well-timed glare, and she returned to trying to convince her teacup to walk on legs that were a tad wobbly at the knees. Or was she?

When they were heading out of class, Lily caught up with them, rather excited, in a bit of a flurry.

"So, this strange thing happened today."

"What, Potter lob about a chunk of his hairgel at you instead of trying other ways to get your attention?"

"No, Toni, you dumb jerk. So I was sitting in the class with, you know, that parchment you all charmed to write to each other on. And suddenly, while I was fiddling with the teacup, the parchment had a new message. It read, ' _hi, there.'_ And I, of course, was intrigued, so I wrote back, saying hello. Turns out there's someone who found a piece of it near the Astronomy Tower and realized that it absorbs ink and tried writing on it. The upshot of which is I have a penfriend. In Hogwarts!"

"That really is strange, and Lily, you should know better than to reply to random magical objects that seem to sprout a consciousness," Dina was really worried. She went over the charm they'd applied to the paper in a head, trying out variations and wondering if they had somehow performed Dark Magic.

"Oi, Dina. Let her be. You know she's always wanted someone she can write to she doesn't have to meet. Don't bug her. Let's go, I want to go watch the Quidditch practice for the team. They're always so particularly… sweaty when they practice the day before the match. It's quite exciting to watch, if only you'd ever notice. "

Dina groaned. Toni had a habit of hanging out at Quidditch practices after classes sometimes. You'd never know it to hear her talk about the game- she only ever mentioned the finer points of how the Seeker's hair dropped over his thick brows to someone she didn't know- but her friends knew that she was quite the Quidditch expert, even though she didn't play herself. She was possibly one of the most ardent fans of the sport Dina had ever seen, and she truly worshipped the only all-female Quidditch team, the Holyhead Harpies, with a fervor most reserved for the spiritual. Dina trudged along with her to watch practices sometimes, usually burying her head in a book, enjoying the sunlight on her shoulders while Toni watched the game, muttering suggestions under her breath to the players. Of course, none of them knew that Toni was such an expert, or that she even played the game, since she was incredibly private about her passions and shared them with very few. Shaking her head at her own malleability, Dina went with Toni, searching among her books in her bag for the one she had been reading. _Drat, I left it on my bedside table._ She had soon Summoned it, however, and they reached the Quidditch pitch within a matter of minutes and Toni dragged her to the seats she considered the best for viewing.

Dina whipped out her book and started reading. It really was a beautiful afternoon, ripening slowly into evening, the orange cast of the sky turning into a hushed mauve in bits, framing the players prettily, making the game even more wonderful to the watch. The Ravenclaw Quidditch team was a very efficient one, their only weakness being their Seeker. Though the team functioned like a perfectly oiled machine, the Seeker, Jules Ramirez, was so organized that he often missed more impulsive, spontaneous moves made by his opponents, his own capability for a rational game slowing them down more than it should. Dina watched them for a bit before returning to the book, looking up only when she heard distant shouts on the pitch that sounded a lot like-

"Hey, Hofstader! We booked the pitch from five to six this evening, get out!" James Potter was striding up the field, to the side of the pitch where the Ravenclaw Keeper hovered in front of the hoops. She flew down to meet him. Toni had already rushed to the field, expecting a confrontation. Not to be left behind in seeing the incident unfold, Dina shut her book and followed.

"- no, Potter, we have the pitch till five thirty at least. And come on, try to understand. We have a match with Slytherin tomorrow, don't do this. I know you and your team need the practice, what with the new Seeker you've taken on, but honestly, this is unacceptable. Who booked your pitch anyway?"

"It was me, actually." Sirius had strolled up to the small group, looking as unflappable as ever. "I must have mixed up the dates or something. Nothing to it, Hofstader, you need to leave."

Dina looked from one to the other, feeling awfully small surrounded by the tallest in their year and more. Finally she spoke up, and said, "Listen, there's no need to get into this. If you've both booked the pitch, why don't you both play?"

Both teams turned towards her, and she gulped a little under the scrutiny of so many eyes. Looking straight at Elena Hofstader's tiepin she explained. "Well, Elena, you have your game strategy planned out already, and from what I've seen, you've gone over it about ten times." She gulped again.

Toni chimed in. "She's right, Hofstader. Your team's beginning to look a little jaded running over the same moves. It might do them some good to be up against a challenging team like this one for a change." James flashed her a grateful look, and a faint expression of surprise crossed Sirius' face for a moment before it settled back into its usually cold lines.

"Fine. Let's have a friendly match. First one to score a 100 wins, or the first to catch the Snitch." Hofstader strode off, looking a little annoyed but convinced that her team was going to be more than up to the challenge.

"So, you're the new Seeker for Gryffindor, then?" Toni was running her eyes over Sirius, sizing him up almost. To Dina's surprise, he looked vaguely discomfited- an expression that hardly suited his face.

"Yes, I tried out, and it seems to have worked out well."

James piped in, oblivious to the strange air of tension. "He's really good, guys! You'll see, I've been playing with him for years. He's our surprise for the match against Slytherin next week. Bye, get good seats. Friendly match my arse." He grinned at them before running to inform the rest of the team, including the Captain, Fabian Prewett, who had been standing to the side looking a tad disgruntled.

Dina saw Toni and Sirius still exchanging cold stares and hurried to interrupt. "I'm going to go get seated, Toni. You coming?"

"Yeah, sure. Hold on." The two of them scrambled over the makeshift fence to get into the top rows, and then sat there waiting for the match to begin. They were to keep score. Dina sat well into her seat. This was going to be interesting.


	4. Bigger on the Inside

Chap 4

 _Dina was agonizing in the shadows. She knew she could not go out there alone, those two would be more than she could take on by herself. But did she really have a choice? She tried, very silently, to back into the shadows so she could send a Patronus to at least three places at the same time._

 _The first time she tried, silver mist ineffectually whooshed out of her wand with some noise. She froze, listening to see if Snape and Avery had noticed. They hadn't, being more than a little occupied with focusing their aggression on their victim, whoever she was. She always had difficulty with Patronuses. On her next try, three almost formless, flickering silver crows swooped out of her wand._

 _When the next scream rang out, silenced immediately by Avery, standing guard while Snape tortured the girl, Dina made up her mind. She whispered her Body Bind Curse- it was, after all, her specialty- and Avery thudded to the ground._

 _Snape whirled around, and before she knew it, there were lights swooshing her way from his direction._

Prewett and Elena shook hands with each other before they kicked off. Dina could hear Toni sighing next to her. "That Prewett really does have a fine head on his shoulders. Doesn't hurt, of course that it's framed by all that magnificent red hair. I think this is going to be a tough one, you know."

The game had begun, though not entirely in earnest. Hofstader was hovering before the hoops, looking relaxed but her eyes not missing a move. The Gryffindors were tossing the Quaffle between themselves, Jen Darbyshire, a particularly tall Gryffindor in sixth year, keeping it mostly in possession. She tossed it to Willa Rickman, who tried to toss it to their third, Penny Williams, but right as she was flying down to catch it-

A Bludger had flown between the two of them, sent on its way by the Ravenclaw Beater, and Chaser Douglas Hitch, working in perfect coordination, had seized the Quaffle, and was speeding towards the hoops on the other end of the pitch, flanked by Holden and Radley, on either side, waiting for him to pass. The formation was very tight, and try as they might, the Gryffindor Beaters couldn't break it. Douglas passed to Radley, and she sped towards the goalposts, and as Dina watched, Prewett tensed up. He looked leonine, his thick hair framing his face as he flew in front of the three hoops, guarding them fiercely as he crouched low and loose on his broom. Radley got close to the hoops, and threw- but she'd been feinting, and passed it to Holden instead, who immediately used the unguarded left hoop to score.

"TEN POINTS TO RAVENCLAW!" Toni was standing next to her on the seats and bellowing, "And what a wonderful bit of play that was, well done, Holden, well done!" Dina giggled; it was unusual to see Toni this excited in public, she rarely even looked unruffled. Now, she seemed to realize that half the players were staring at her bemused, and sat down hastily, smoothing her hair, back to her usual muttering under her breath.

The teams resumed their match, only, it didn't look quite as relaxed as before. The Gryffindor team was now aware that it was up against a team it had severely underestimated, and Potter and Black no longer had their usual supercilious smirks on. Potter's, particularly had slid off his face with a squelch Dina could swear she heard when Holden scored. He was now racing over the pitch, and Prewett was shouting instructions to the rest of the team, the Gryffindors moving in more organized patterns than before, each of them using their more aggressive moves on the Ravenclaw Chasers now. The Quaffle was still in the latter's position, though, and the game got more aggressive as the two brawny Gryffindor Beaters kept swinging their bats at the Bludger, sending it in the direction of the Chasers of the opposing team, but all three of them were fast enough to dodge it while maintaining their tight knit formation. Suddenly, Toni screamed. "LOOK UP, YOU MORONS, LOOK UP!"

All the players followed her finger to where the other drama was unfolding. Ravenclaw Seeker Andy Murray was speeding along, low on his broom, and Sirius was close on his heels, gaining fast. The two competed for a while, almost equally matched, before Sirius crouched lower on his broom and used his legs for extra speed and curved in front of Andy's broom, effectively blocking him before he stretched out his left arm almost nonchalantly, and-

"A HUNDRED AND FIFTY POINTS TO GRYFFINDOR! You idiots, how could you not have seen that coming!" Toni was gesticulating wildly from the stands. Dina thought she saw Sirius turn his broom towards her and a glint of a smirk, before he confirmed her suspicions by elaborately bowing in Toni's direction. He then proceeded to fly down to where the rest of his team had gathered, presumably to get an earful from Prewett for having caught the Snitch so early in the game. Next to her, Dina could hear Toni fuming as she sat down. She turned towards her and put an arm around her shoulder. "It's alright, you know. It wasn't really a match, after all."

"Yes, well, did you see his effing face? He was practically glowing with all the force of his gloating. He knew I thought he wouldn't be up to the job, and he did this deliberately to rile me up. Arrgghhh, I could strangle him."

"Woah, Toni, calm down. Why don't you go to our team and offer them some pointers while you're at it? I thought you didn't like people knowing of your interest in Quidditch."

"You know what? I think I will. If that's what it takes to get one up on that smug bastard and wipe the smirk right off his face. Our team will be mopping the floor with his remains when I'm done with them." With that, she strode off furiously towards Hofstader, leaving Dina to wonder why exactly Sirius Black had got to her quite so much.

James caught up to Sirius as he was strolling back to the Common Room after practice, trailing muddy footprints behind up.

"Hey, mate. Hold up. I need to talk to you."

Sirius stopped and turned, raising one eyebrow at James as he struggled to reach him, already having tripped over a suit of arms in his hurry to reach him. As he fought with his cloak, trying to disentangle it from the chainmail, Sirius looked on, not helping, standing there with his customary smirk. "What is it, James? Why are you in such a hurry? You know I'm always there whenever you need to talk, buddy. Is this something about Evans, now? Or have you found a new redhead to obsess over? Because believe me, that would be a right relief-"

"Shut up. Come help me get off this damn thing." Sirius strode over to him reluctantly and used his wand to sever James' cloak from the chainmail.

"Ok, now, tell me what it is."

"No, I just wanted to ask you for a goddamn reason. Why in the holy hell would you play like that? You know how screwy Fabian gets around this time of the year! He took me right out for recommending you to the team so strongly, saying, what was it, yes 'temperamental idiots like Black have no place on this team, and if you don't buck up, Potter, neither will you!' Do you see? You've put my arse in danger now, and you know how I love this. What made you decide to go after the Snitch right then, while missing a foul by a hair's breadth?"

Sirius ran his hands through his hair and sighed. His normal composure cracked a little; he could never keep it up when he saw James in distress. He put a hand on his shoulder and helped him up. "I'm sorry, Prongs, won't happen again. I'll speak to Fabian about it. It was just that…"

"Just what?"

"Just that Ravenclaw! I don't know why, but the way she sneered at me before the match, it really got to me, you know? It reminded me of- of other things. Other people. And I felt like a little boy, like I had to prove that I was good enough," he broke off and looked away. "Let's get back to the dorm, shall we? I don't quite feel up to dinner tonight. Or you could just ask Moony and Wormtail to get us something from the Hall."

James was standing by now, and in a rare contemplative mood, he accompanied Sirius back to their dorm. He wondered why a Ravenclaw he barely knew had managed to make such an impact on Sirius, and why in the world she had reminded him of his mother.

Once Dina and Toni had finished their dinner, they headed towards their Common Room. Dina had decided to not probe any more with Toni. It was never any use to ask her what the matter was with her when she seemed perturbed, she spoke about things in her own time, and by now Dina had learnt to repress her curiosity for a while; Toni always did eventually tell her what was bothering her. As they walked back in companionable silence after the buzz of the Hall, Dina spoke, a tad hesitantly.

"So, what do you think of the match tomorrow? The team seemed very well prepared to me."

"They are, but you know Slytherin. Their style is always more aggressive than Gryffindor, and not half as obvious. That Captain of theirs, Catherine, she's a right sneaky little one. Looks tiny, perfect build for a Seeker, of course. Keeps her team in place well enough, and remember last term? She got past that rather skilled Seeker from Hufflepuff, what was his name-"

"Brody, I think. Yes, I didn't think she'd be able to best him…"

They walked all the way back to the Common Room discussing the finer points of the practice they'd watched that evening, Dina carefully avoiding too many mentions of Black, and Toni seemed grateful for it. Dina did not really understand Quidditch much; she liked watching the sport, but she wasn't passionate about it the way Toni was, even though she liked talking to Toni about matches. It was a lot of fun to see Toni so excited, and she always learnt a few new things- moves, if not more about Toni, though it was usually the latter. When they reached the Common Room, however, the conversation ground to a halt.

"Lily? What are you doing here? Are you alright? Has something happened?" Toni had rushed to the side of the red haired girl, who looked more than a little flushed. She had clearly been waiting for them for a while; the floor around her sported a rather bright candy wrapper, betraying Lily's tension- she always ate a lot more candy than usual when she was in a tizzy about something.

"Hi, Dina, Toni, I'm sorry for turning up late like this, I know you both must be tired from the first day of school, but I just- just needed to talk to someone, and I didn't want to go to Marl with anything right now, she's been through a lot herself, but I just couldn't not-"

Toni had rushed to the two of them as well. Hastily answering the eagle knocker's question, they ushered Lily into the Common Room. Once they were all sitting in comfortable chairs; or at least, Lily was, Dina as a rule preferred to perch on the floor. Lily was still sniffling, and wiping her nose, she said, "So I tried to contact Petunia again. I wrote to her and told her things about school, and asked her how she was, because she hasn't spoken to me at all since the beginning of term, and when I was at home, she found every excuse to be outside. She's met some unpleasant boys, these big, tough looking bullies, and she keeps hanging out with them. And I was just- just worried about her, so I asked-" she dissolved into sobs again.

There were a few students in the Room who were beginning to look around, so Toni cast a Muffliato charm around them; she knew Lily would clam up in a moment if she realized there were people listening. She didn't like to lose control, and the closest she ever came to doing so was when she had rage fueled outbursts, not when she felt this vulnerable. Dina put a hand on her knee and asked her again. "What happened, Lily? What did you ask her?"

"I- I asked her what she was doing with these bullies, because I'd seen them, I'd seen how they'd treat Sev, just because he was different, and smaller than them. And it wasn't just him, they always pick on boys and girls smaller than them, who come from families that are not as- well, as comfortably off as we are, so these children can never really tell anyone what they do. And I asked Petunia how she could be comfortable with them treating kids this way, and she sent back my letter, shredded, in an envelope, with a note that said, keep out of my business, you- you freak."

Toni held Lily while she sobbed into her shoulder, and looked at Dina. They both knew of Lily's troubled relationship with her sister since she'd first come to school and the four of them had found each other. Lily didn't really like going home very often because even though she missed being close to her sister, Petunia had been treating her very badly since. Dina was sure that there was more to this than just jealousy, but she'd never met Petunia, and neither had Toni- Lily didn't like people visiting her at home because of the tense situation. She was very private that way, and was often embarrassed when her sister came up. Most people were unaware that she had a sister at all. This letter was the last in a long series of efforts Lily had made to reach out to Petunia, but things between them just did not look like they would mend anytime soon.

 _She still thinks it's her fault,_ thought Dina. She got up and went to the stairs, silently Summoning some chocolate from her bedstand- she always had a ready supply of it, and in her experience, it never failed to help, if even a little bit.

"Here, Lily. Have some chocolate, you'll feel better." She broke off a large bit and handed it to Lily, then broke off two pieces each for herself and Toni.

Through a mouthful of chocolate, ten minutes later, Toni spoke up. "You know she's only doing it because she wanted to be here, don't you, Lily? Just let it slide off your back; you don't have to keep trying to contact her. Maybe try not talking to her for a change and see how she feels about that."

Lily was looking a little brighter with the chocolate smeared over her hands and face, her nose not as red as it had been when they saw her outside the Tower. "Don't be mean, Toni. I'll talk to her in a while, just can't do it right now. I need something to let the tension out, you know. "

Toni grinned. "Well, I know exactly what do about that. Just give me a minute." She walked over to some seventh years, and whispered furiously with them before returning to them with her grin even wider.

"I swear, if you don't tell me what's going on-"

"Dina, Lily. Follow me." Dina giggled. She knew exactly where Toni was taking them, even though Lily had no idea, and just followed her.

They'd reached what looked like a small broom closet set into the corner of the Common Room. Toni turned to face them with a flourish. "Dina, may I have a drumroll please? Lily Evans, I present to you, one of the greatest marvels of the Ravenclaw Tower. Here you have… the Music Library!"

Lily looked faintly puzzled. All she could see was a broom closet. Dina had joined in now and she walked over to Toni's side. "Walk into my parlour, said the- you know the rest of the spiel, Lily. Just follow us." And the two of them disappeared into the closet. Lily hastened to follow them, and the next minute, she fell back for a second. What had looked like an ordinary broom closet seconds before was now a large spacious room with rows and rows of what looked like-

"Records! We can play music here all night, and dance to it if we like!"

"What on earth is this place? Who came up with this?"

"There was this seventh year when we were in our second year, that's two years ago, who was a fan of this Muggle show called- what was it, Dina?"

"Doctor Who. I like the show too. So basically he got the idea from there- a space that looks small on the outside, but is a lot bigger on the inside. And he worked on the technicalities for a few months before he converted this closet into a music library. And we've all- at least those of us who have access to Muggle records- been adding to the collection ever since. So you'll find a pretty eclectic selection. But I helped catalogue it myself, and the dance music's over there."

Lily grinned widely for the first time that evening. "Let's get on that floor, ladies. We only have all night."

The girls put on some music and started dancing. They only had till the next morning, and then of course, there was the Ravenclaw Slytherin match, and who would want to miss that?


	5. The Start of Something New

Chap 5

 _Dina reacted fast, putting up a strong Shield Charm before any of the lights could hit her. Snape, however, was relentless, a skilled dueller, young as he was. As he fought to cast spells, his face contorted with fear and concentration, Dina heard running footsteps behind her, and suddenly, she was not alone._

 _She heard James' voice as he shouted out a spell to slow Snape down as he fought. Snape looked past her shoulder to see where the spell was coming from, and that was the opening Dina needed. "Levicorpus," she said in her head, the spell easier than it had ever been before, and watched as Snape was hoisted into the air, as if by an invisible hook on his ankle._

 _On the ground, Avery was beginning to stir. Dina felt a steadying hand on her shoulder and turned to see Lily's determined face inches from hers. Together, they cast Stunning spells, the combined force of both knocking Avery back down._

 _Lily stepped towards Snape, who was still dangling mid-air, his thin face now looking a tad more fearful._

"Wake the hell up, Toni, Dina! We're going to be late for the match!" Dina opened her eyes blearily to Lily knotting a bow into her hair. Even this tense and her face flushed from the haste, she looked lovely in a blue sweater and a blue bow in her red hair, her eyes sparkling. Lily Evans loved Quidditch, and no one was going to make her late for even a bit of it.

Dina sat up and stretched, taking in the scene around her. They'd all fallen asleep in the Music Library after what now seemed like very blurry bouts of dancing and chocolate eating. There had been some Firewhiskey Cauldrons, as far as she could recall…

"I have a devil of a headache, Lily, please just let me go back to sleep." Toni had started grumbling, unwilling to give up the last few dredges of sleep. Dina leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Ravenclaw Slytherin match, Toni. We're about fifteen minutes away from it."

The magic words said, she leaned back to observe the effect. Within the next minute, Toni was up and looking wide awake, and in ten minutes, both Toni and Lily were dressed, waiting by the door, while Dina put on her scarf in the dorm. _Why do they both have to look quite so flawless in those clothes?_ , she thought, struggling with her tie. _I always look like a right dork in the robes._

"Hurry up, Dina!" Lily screamed again, anxiously checking her large watch- it had been a gift from her parents during a long ago Christmas, and she treasured it, and had since last year, taken to fiddling with it whenever she was nervous.

Dina checked her own watch and started. They only had five minutes to grab breakfast. She yanked her tie into place, pulled on a blue sweater and a gray scarf, and rushed out the door, dragging Lily and Toni on each side of her. _Two minutes to get down to the Hall, one to grab breakfast, a bit of toast should do, and, about one or two to rush to the pitch._ Dina groaned. She hated this all this endless running; seemed to be all she'd been doing since the beginning of this term.

They got to the pitch with a minute to go, huffing from the stitches at their sides. Suddenly the morning didn't seem cold anymore. There seemed to be a haze covering the Quidditch pitch; it was nearly vibrating with all the energy held in it. Two blocks of colours dominated- blue and green. _Who ever said Ravenclaws are not aggressive was clearly neither a Ravenclaw, nor someone who actually ever came to one of these matches_ , thought Dina as the three of them struggled over the stands, clambering over people who hardly seemed to care that there were three girls literally climbing over them. They fought over the stands until Lily raised her hand and called out to someone Dina couldn't see yet. "Hey, Remus, could you boys make some space next to you? We can't find any!"

Dina looked up, blushing furiously, to see Remus waving back and beckoning them to where they were sitting. She hadn't really spoken to him after the breakfast, and not much even then. But she had kept replaying their handful of conversations in her head, feeling warm inside, and not quite knowing what to do with the smile that seemingly of its own volition stretched across her face whenever she thought of him, or how his eyes sparkled when he smiled, even through a lightly scarred face; the scars continued to intrigue her, and there had never yet been a mystery Dina had been able to let go of.

Within minutes, they had reached where the boys were, and they sat down, squeezing a little to make space for each other. Lily looked quite a bit disgruntled with her own placement, quashed in between Pettigrew and Potter, while the latter seemed more than happy with this arrangement, and was already beginning to babble away about the finer points of the practices they had watched and how he thought Ravenclaw and Slytherin were a very well-matched team. _He practically glows when he talks about Quidditch, there's something so heartwarming about that grin stretching across his face when he's not smirking_ , thought Dina as she sat down between James and Remus, another blush already suffusing her cheeks. She looked down and pulled her hair around her face in an effort to hide it. She looked across at Toni, and found her keenly watching Lily, studiously ignoring Sirius next to her, whose face had frozen into cut marble. Wondering again about this development that she was unaware of, Dina followed Toni's gaze to where Lily was sitting. In the past few minutes, while she had been busy hiding her face from scrutiny, Lily, shockingly, had seemed to become slightly more comfortable, and was beginning to answer James' queries about her opinions. James' smile had grown warmer, and from what Dina could hear, he was clearly impressed by Lily's knowledge of the game.

 _Well, that has to be a first. James Potter and Lily Evans having a civil conversation._ Dina was startled out of her train of thought by Remus voicing them right next to her. "Nice, right? I've told that prat so many times to get out of that arrogant act he manages to pull off so well. I always knew he and Lily would hit it off if they ever actually spoke."

Toni leaned across with a smug grin plastered on her face as well. "Yes, well, I always knew too. I predicted this around this time last year when I realized both of them were such huge Quidditch buffs. I'm usually right about these things."

Sirius grunted. Remus reached across and slapped his arm.

"And what exactly is your problem, Pads? You've been behaving very strangely since the girls turned up, and that seems more than out of character."

Sirius turned to glare at Remus, but Dina was looking at Toni, whose face betrayed a flicker of something right before it returned to its customary expression, which usually told the world at large to piss off. _Interesting_. Dina made a mental note to follow up on this when they got back to the Common Room.

Just then, James shouted. "Hey, Moony, Pads! The match is starting, you can save your staring match for later!" As he spoke, they heard the shrill whistle of Professor Michael, their Quidditch coach and Flying Instructor, who was going to be refereeing the match. They watched as the two captains strode towards each other and shook hands, Hofstader's calm not betraying a single twitch as Harrington, the Slytherin Captain, held her fingers in what was unmistakeably a crushing grip. They went back to their brooms and positioned themselves as Professor Michael let out the Snitch, the Bludger, and finally, the Quaffle, and blew his whistle.

The match was under way.

"TEN POINTS TO SLYTHERIN!" Nikolas Daza screamed, red in the face, his voice magnified to reach the far ends of the stadium. The whole Slytherin crowd rose, a wave of green and silver, cheering for their team, and an answering wave of blue stood up to boo them.

"That makes the score a whopping sixty to ten in favour of the Slytherins. Ravenclaw will have to buck up, and soon, to catch up with them, and oh, there goes McDonald!" The Ravenclaw crowd groaned, and Dina heard Remus groan with them next to her. "Could he not see the effing Bludger coming at him, ugh, this match is terrible." She grinned to herself a little- she'd never seen Remus this excited for a match. Or perhaps she had just never noticed how he behaved at matches; never seen him run his hands through his hair exasperatedly at every loss and whoop for every win, something distinctly feral in his grin and his sparkling eyes. _I can barely see that network of scars now that his face is glowing from the match._ Remus turned to face her, still stamping his feet exaggeratedly. "Hey, did you guys have Marl with you last night? She usually doesn't miss matches, particularly ones against Slytherin."

Dina snapped out of her contemplative reverie at that. "What? We thought she was in your dorm! Lily came over alone last night. Have none of you seen her since then?"

"Toni", she leaned over, "Marl hasn't been in her dorm since last night."

"Fuck. Where do you think she could be? Wait, ask Lily if she's seen her."

"Lily. Lily! LILY!" She turned around, flushed and excited, a little annoyed to have been pulled away from what had seemed like an intense conversation with James.

"What?"

"Have you seen Marl since yesterday? Remus says they haven't seen her this morning, and-"

"She never misses Quidditch matches! Boys, how could you not have mentioned this before? What on earth is wrong with you?"

James and Peter looked at Lily sheepishly, while Sirius was having a furious whispered conversation with Toni Dina could only hear snatches of. Remus had his head in his hands. "Should have checked for her before, this is so irresponsible, she was in danger and we knew that-"

"Ok, shut up, Remus. Hold on." Dina whipped out her binoculars- she always had them on her during matches- and scanned the crowd. "Hold up, guys. I think something's really fishy. I don't see Avery and Snape anywhere, nor any of those girls who simper around Avery all the time. We need to locate Marl right now." She turned to Remus and put a hand on his shoulder. "Remus, where's your map? We need it."

He looked up, hope dancing in his eyes. "James, get the map. We need to find Marl."

A look passed between the boys, and Sirius stopped whispering to Toni. "Alright, let's go. We need to get out of here and make sure no one notices."

"No one's going to notice us leaving, it's the middle of a match," Lily chimed in. "And James, I think we could do with that cloak of yours if someone sees us."

"And I can do a pretty good Confounding Charm even if they think they've seen something", said Toni, standing up and brushing her robes off.

"So what are we waiting for? Let's go, people!" Dina herded them out, looking at the pitch once before they headed out. _This school year is turning out nothing like I expected it to,_ she thought as she rushed after everyone as they climbed over the stands.

Sirius and Toni were running along the corridor. Dina was trailing behind the others, cursing her lack of athletic abilities. Remus was running beside her, holding her hand, pulling her as fast as she could go. James, Lily and Peter had run on ahead, the map with James.

"Come on, Dina, she's on the fourth floor and this bloody castle is no joke to get around!"

"Wait, hold on. Stitch in my side. Hey, what's that?"

A ghost had floated out of the tapestry they were aiming at running behind to get to the classroom they could see Marl was in.

"What are you all doing here? I thought there was a match on. We ghosts don't leave the castle very often, but I do like to get to hear about these things-"

James had skidded to a stop. "Hey, Nick, old man. Do us a favour, won't you? Rush to the farthest distance you can, and find a way to convey this message to McGonagall, or to Dumbledore. Tell them a fourth year Gryffindor is being attacked by four boys in an unused classroom on the fourth floor, and they need to get there as soon as they can."

The ghost, whom Dina had seen before but never spoken to, straightened up, and fixed his ruffle more elegantly than before. "Fear not, sirs. I will use the portraits to get that message to them as soon as possible." With that, he was off, gliding along the corridor faster than Dina had ever seen one of the school ghosts go.

"Ok, now, we need to move." Toni and Sirius had stopped, next to each other, Toni's hand resting casually on Sirius' shoulder before he gave her hand a pointed look and she dropped it as if he were hot. Dina and Remus exchanged a look and a huff before they all started running again.

Within the next ten minutes, they were on the fourth floor, James and Peter having successfully Stunned two of the staircases with a spell of their own invention so that they stopped shifting around. They hurtled to the classroom from which they could hear the sounds of a fierce duel coming. Lily reached first, trying the door with Alohomora, which didn't seem to work.

"The bastards must have put a spell on it," she wiped her hair out of her eyes, nearly in tears. They were losing valuable time.

"Move." Dina shoved James and Sirius aside to where they were crowding the door. She put a hand on Lily's left arm. "Let's try it together, and we blast it this time. No need to unlock it."

They aimed together at the door, and behind them, Toni and the boys raised their wands as well. "REDUCTO!" The combined force of seven spells hit the door and it was blown off its hinges, hitting one of the boys inside, the Hufflepuff boy Dina had seen hanging out with Snape and Avery before. He was thrown off his feet as the door collapsed, taking him with it.

"Well, that's one down and four to go." Dina turned to see Sirius grinning as he spoke, his smirk covering his face. The next minute, though, his face contorted. She turned to see what was making him look quite so broken, and she saw the horror on James, Peter and Remus' faces before she saw that Avery had shifted to reveal the fourth Slytherin. In their hurry to get to the fourth floor, they hadn't read all the names on the map very well. Regulus Black's face blanched an unpleasant colour when he saw his older brother, and he looked for a second as though he might run and hide behind the other boys, but then he straightened and stood, his sadly defiant face looking at Sirius.

"Well, well, well. Looks like we have company." Avery stepped forward, a smile on his face, his wand raised.


	6. Kiss and Tell

Chap 6

" _I've had enough, Sev. And so have my friends. Stop picking on defenseless people, or I swear to God, we will come for you." Lily's face was flushed red. Dina saw Severus' face crumple as Lily put the counter curse on him and turned around to walk away. He fell on the floor in a heap and didn't raise his head, his thin shoulders shaking with huge sobs._

 _Avery had begun to wake up on the floor, but both James and Dina hit him with a combination of spells until he fell back groaning, sprouting what looked like fuzz all over his face, resembling a giant bee more than anything else._

" _Well, I don't think any of those girls are going to like him quite so much anymore", James grinned. Dina grinned back as she conjured ropes to bind both the Slytherins. Lily rushed to pick up the girl, who was still unconscious, her face tear-streaked as she mumbled uneasily. "I'm going to the Hospital Wing with her. You both take these two bits of scum to Dumbledore, he'll know what to do."_

 _Dina could see that Lily needed some time alone. She tugged at James' sleeve, and he started Levitating the two boys so they could head towards the Head's office._

Dina and Toni gasped when Avery's bulk moved towards them. His shifting robes revealed a heap on the ground, and they could see Marl's blonde head moving vaguely. Toni started to run towards her, but was blasted off her feet by Snape. Lily stood next to James, looking like her heart was breaking. She lifted her wand and aimed it at Regulus, who by now looked like he had forgotten all semblance of any magic he knew. Sirius was walking at him. He hadn't bothered to pull his wand on him, and Regulus was already trembling. The fourth boy, Dina thought his name was Nott, was engaged in a wrestling bout with Peter while Remus was trying his hardest to incapacitate him, but missed every time the two boys tumbled over in their bid to gain the upper hand. Toni had hit a desk, crumpled sideways over it, and slid to the floor with a sickening thud.

Dina looked around, panic blossoming in her stomach. Toni was out, Remus was too caught up, so was Peter, and Sirius would not look away from his brother. Avery continued to walk towards her.

"Impedimenta!" James bellowed from beside Lily. Snape tried to shield Avery, but Dina caught him with a Jelly Legs curse, and he was soon incapacitated. Lily still had her wand on Regulus, her wand arm shaking, refusing to look where Snape was being compelled to dance by Dina's curse. Sensing an opening, Dina rushed to pick Marl up. She was whimpering on the floor, and when Dina picked her up, leaning her against the nearest desk, she saw blood on her lips, and a bruise beginning to blossom on her cheek. Something in the pit of Dina's being began to burn, a slow fire spreading to her limbs. She'd had just about enough. Somewhere, as if from a distance, she could hear Sirius punching Regulus as he cried out to him for help, to stop, that he would tell their mother; she could see that Remus had finally decided to go the whole hog and tie up both Peter and Nott and they were squirming in a silvery cage he'd conjured; she could see Lily shaking, barely lifting her wand as James spun around her, hitting anyone attacking her with curses as fast as he could. She saw all of this, but all of it had suddenly stopped to matter. She felt a rushing in her ears as she spoke to Marlene.

"Get up, Marl. This can't be anymore. Stand up, lean on me if you need to, but stand up." She helped her up, struggling to handle her weight but holding on to a desk for support. She looked around for Marl's wand and Summoned it from under a nearby chair, a slow calm dogging her actions. She put the wand in her hand and looked her straight in the eye. "He's done this to you, Marl. And I know I could take him. But he really is yours to take down."

The blonde girl looked at her and a smile dawned on her grimy face. She wiped the blood off her lips with the back of her left hand and picked up her wand to aim it at Avery. The room seemed to stop as Avery halted, not advancing towards the two girls in the centre anymore, looking scared for the first time that evening.

"Flipendo." Marl moved towards Avery now as he fell back. "Petrificus Totalus". He thudded to the floor and pure revulsion flooded Marlene's face as she walked up to him and looked down at him. "You cannot believe how much I'm going to enjoy this. Cru-"

"McKinnon! Stop that this instant. Step away from him!" McGonagall had tumbled into the room, with Dumbledore and their Potions Professor, Slughorn, on her heels. Dumbledore calmly looked around, surveying the situation, his eyes blazing over his glasses. Slughorn was huffing to himself, muttering a number of excuses already about how four boys from his house, including a second year, had managed to sneak off to presumably hold a Gryffindor hostage, and a young girl at that-

"That's quite enough, Professor. Minerva, would you be so kind as to escort the four Slytherin gentlemen, and oh, Riven, is it, from Hufflepuff? Could you please take them to my office and wait for me to come up there? Horace, I suppose you and I could help clean up the room."

McGonagall immediately unfroze Avery, and extricated Regulus from Sirius' grip, his lip and nose bleeding copiously. Snape was on the floor; James' curses had unerringly hit him the worst. She conjured two stretchers, one for him, and the other for Riven, and turned to Slughorn, who was standing with his back to Dumbledore's, the two of them having just set the desks back in order.

"Could you take them to the hospital wing, Horace?" She walked towards the cage Remus had conjured, inspecting it with her wand before Vanishing it with a tap. Nott and Peter fell out in a heap, and she picked both of them up by the scruff of their robes. "You're to go to the Head's Office, Nott. And you too, Avery, Black. Get going. I'll know if you don't get there."

Dumbledore gave them a brief smile before leaving, saying, "I leave it to you to handle this, Minerva. I suppose you could call Flitwick here if you feel the Ravenclaws are not under your jurisdiction. But I leave that to your discretion." His eyes again regaining their usual twinkle, he left the room.

McGonagall finally turned to the rest of them. " , I can see, needs the hospital wing, and so does Ruthers. But before that, I need someone to tell me what exactly happened here."

"Professor, you have to believe-"

"We saw them on this-"

"Marl, I mean Marlene, you see, she'd been missing-"

"And we didn't know what-"

"There was no time, Professor, we swear, we would have-"

She raised a hand, and silence fell again. "One at a time. You will each have your turn. And I will take Ms. McKinnon's testimony tomorrow, when Madam Pomfrey's had a look at her. The same goes for Miss Ruthers. Now you, Potter, tell me what happened."

"She was missing since last night, you see, Professor. None of us had seen her, and she never misses Quidditch matches. And we got worried because none of her friends had seen her."

Lily chimed in timidly. "It's my fault, Professor. I should have checked on her."

Dina spoke up, unable to stay quiet any longer. "Actually, Professor, it's all our faults. Marl's been threatened by these people before, and she had been subject to violence by Avery and his cronies before this. I think we all kept excusing it as some sort of-"

"A lover's spat, or something or the other. We always found excuses to explain her bruises, their real nature was too unsettling," Remus added, looking crestfallen.

McGonagall looked around at them, her eyes narrowing. "And how did you manage to find her, if you hadn't seen her or spoken to her since last night?"

The boys exchanged tense glances. Their map was very valuable to them, and for it to fall into a teacher's hands would be absolute disaster.

"Um, you see," Peter was shuffling his feet as he spoke, and Dina could almost see the wheels whirring in his head. "We have this parchment we communicate with."

"Yes, we Ravenclaws have it too, it's how we usually speak when we can't meet each other around the grounds." Dina spoke up with Peter, and Remus threw her a grateful glance. Giving up some parchment was no big deal compared to the kind of trouble they could get into over that map.

"I see. I still don't approve of this kind of arrogance, where you thought you should all personally dole out justice, however well placed your regard may have been. Detention for all of you, each Saturday of the following month. You too, Adams, and Ruthers as well, when she's woken up. I will be informing Professor Flitwick of this. I never expected behavior like this from model students like you, and you too, Evans. I hope month-long detention teaches you that you should defer to the Professors when matters get out of hand."

They all stayed silent, Sirius surprisingly still staring hard at the floor, looking like he wished it would swallow him up. McGonagall turned on her heel, and made as if to walk out of the room, her robes swishing. After two steps forward, she stopped and turned again. "Twenty points to Gryffindor for you, Lupin. Excellent spellwork with that cage." And before they could see the hint of a smile on her face, she had gone.

"You have to admit McGonagall's really cool, though," Toni mumbled through a mouthful of chocolate as they sat on Marl's bed in the Hospital Wing the next morning. "She didn't have to let us off so easy."

"Yes, and she almost caught Marl using an Unforgivable. What on earth, Marl?" Dina looked at Marl as she spoke. Marlene now looked much brighter, the cut on her lip healing, and the bruise Vanished by Pomfrey's ointment.

"I don't know what came over me. I just saw this red haze, and every single time he's abused me came rushing back to me. I don't think I knew anything else I could have done."

"I doubt you'd have been able to really do the Cruciatus Curse on him, though. It takes a lot," Lily had walked in, looking better than she had in days.

"No, actually, I think I would have. I've never felt the kind of energy coursing through me that I felt as I looked down at him. I didn't really know how much I hated him until he was cowering there at my feet."

Lily grinned at Marl as she sat down and reached across her for a Chocolate Frog. The boys had mysteriously delivered a huge bunch of chocolates to the Hospital wing within the space of the night and the morning. Toni had said they had better not ask for explanations, because who would do that with chocolate, you right prat, Dina, get your hands off them if you're so suspicious. They had all then proceeded to devour roughly twenty Chocolate Frogs, ten Licorice sticks, two packs of Bertie's Every Flavour beans, something called Razzle that Remus seemed to have slipped in, and god knows how many Ice Mice- they were Marl's weakness. Dina looked at Lily and wondered if she should speak to her. _She seemed pretty torn up last night about Snape being there, don't really know if I should ask her_. Toni spoke up, cutting across Dina's reverie. "How are you feeling, Lily?"

Lily looked at all of them. Marl and Dina had fallen silent, looking at her. She picked out another Licorice stick and started chewing on it. "I'm alright, I think. At least, I've been better, but now I'm not crying. I don't want to speak to Sev right now, but I think I can safely say he and I are not going to be buddies meeting over the summer anytime soon."

"You know you can talk to us, right, Lily?" Dina reached across and put a hand on Lily's knee. "We'll be here."

Lily looked at the three of them and smiled wanly. "You know, I can think of a few things that would make me feel better."

"What, Lily?" Toni was still scarfing down chocolate as she spoke.

"Well, for one, I would like to know what the hell is going on with you and a certain ," grinned Lily, her eyes beginning to sparkle. This was always the face she had when asking someone for information she knew they were reluctant to share. Dina traded a look with her and took up the cue.

"Yeah, what was up with that tension yesterday? Care to share, Miss Ruthers? Or must your friends wait for you to shine the knowledge of Black smooching skills on-"

"Oh, shut up, you guys! He and I started talking about Quidditch over the summer, and he suddenly opened up to me. Asked me to meet him a couple of times, so I did. He seemed very cagey about his house, though, pointedly meeting me really far away from where I knew he lived. Then before we got on the train, we, you know-"

"Smooched, made out, ruffled a few feathers?" Marl was sitting up now, her eyes gleaming. She was a basset hound with gossip.

"I'd throw a pillow at you if you weren't so weak already, you arse. Yes, we kissed, but I told him it was a mistake and that both of us would be really bad for each other. Could you imagine the ego battles? And anyway, I don't really date. He's been trying to ice me out ever since, pretending like I don't exist, but giving me cold glares when he thinks I'm not looking."

"Oh, those glares are anything but cold, Toni. I've seen them come your way, they've almost scorched me in the passing." Toni did throw a pillow at Lily this time.

"Oh, come on! You know what she means. Just talk to him! You know you want to, really. Why build this up?" It was Dina's turn next, as a Chocolate Frog came soaring at her.

"Girls, really! This is the Hospital Wing! Out, out, all of you out right now, Miss Ruthers and McKinnon need their rest. Get back to your Common Rooms!" Madam Pomfrey had arrived, and proceeded to shoo them out of the Hospital Wing very efficiently, cleaning up the mess behind her back with her wand.

Dina looked back before she left the Hospital Wing, and as the doors swung shut, she saw Toni and Marl laughing. It finally felt like a school year again.


	7. Shipwrecked Reunions

Chap 7

 _Dina and James walked with the two floating Slytherins in front of them for a while in silence until Dina cleared her throat and finally spoke. "So, James, what is going on with Lily? You seem to be acting…"_

" _More sensible, less like a prat around her? I know, Moony- you know, Remus- he told me to stop doing that." James fiddled with the collar of his robes for a bit, his wand poking at his throat until it emitted a few sparks that left an angry red mark on his skin and he jumped._

" _You're such an idiot. Wait, let me look at that." Dina used her wand to check the marks. They were nothing serious. But Dina had other things on her mind. "About Remus, though. Is he, you know?"_

" _You mean if he likes only men? No, of course not! Though I can see why he'd give that impression, it's all that floppy sandy hair and that expression…" James was abruptly cut off when Dina's leg stretched out of the dark to kick him with surprising force._

" _That's not what I mean, you rag! I meant, is he, you know, going steady with anyone at the moment?" she stammered out, a blush suffusing her cheeks as she resolutely stared at the floor, looking anywhere but at James._

" _Why, Miss Adams! Am I to take this as indication of some interest in our very own pet genius?"_

Halloween at Hogwarts was always fun, except if one happened to be Lily Evans. For Lily, Halloween consisted of avoiding pranks the Marauders had set up exclusively, or so it seemed, for her that would end up with her inevitably landing in James' lap, often quite literally. She preferred to ignore all celebrations of the day, and skulked near the library, usually with Snape keeping her company. This year, though, she felt as though she could hardly speak to him anymore, not after having seen him with Avery and the others. She hadn't spoken to him since that day, and though it had been more than a week, she didn't know how to even begin a conversation with him. Lost in thought, she was walking to the library when she bumped into a suit of arms. Lily started back when she looked up. Remus looked up at her from behind the suit of arms, or at least where it had been before Lily crashed into it and it crumbled to the ground, albeit reluctantly. His hair was mussed, more than usual, and his face had a terrified look to it. She knelt to the ground, reaching a hand out to him.

"Hey, Remus, are you ok? Here, take my hand. Can you stand?"

To her surprise, Remus cowered back and looked at her like he had never seen her before. For a moment, Lily was frightened by the lack of recognition in his eyes. She thought she could take her wand out, but hesitated, the blank panic in his eyes stopping her. She walked around to the front of the suit of arms and put it up again with her wand so Remus could not see her. Then she came back to where she had been and sat down next to him, her hand outstretched, waiting for him to take it.

A good twenty minutes later, Remus' hand timidly slipped into Lily's. She looked across at him, something she had been avoiding for the past few minutes. Without asking any questions, she rooted in her bag with her other hand and took out a bar of Honeydukes chocolate and handed it to him. He reached across and took it, taking a large bite out of it.

"Fanks", he mumbled out of a mouthful of chocolate. "You're sweet for waiting, Lily."

"I didn't really have anywhere else to be, you know. Where's your usual gang of miscreants? You seem to be missing at least two obnoxious boys from your immediate surroundings."

Remus smiled at her, grateful for her humour; it made things lighter, and he didn't really have to answer the question that loomed large between them. He attempted a laugh and achieved a weak giggle before he answered. "They're off setting up a prank for McGonagall. Or at least James and Peter are. I think Pads is somewhere around the Hufflepuff common room, trying to run into Dorcas Meadowes."

"Dear Lord. I expected as much. I'm on my way to the library, would you like to come? That's unless you have to go off on a search for a maiden as well," Lily stood up and dusted off her robes, adjusting her watch on her wrist.

"That's fine. I'll just head on to the Common Room. Thanks again, Lily. It was nice having you here." Remus took off, walking a little slower than usual, his shoulders bowed.

 _He looks twice his age like that_ , thought Lily. _I wonder what made him panic that way, I've never seen that look in his eyes_.

"Hey, Remus! How do you feel about a post-Feast party tonight?"

He turned and smiled at her. "Well, I could always use one, even if to sit in the corner and watch those fools goofing off. Where's this party you speak of?"

"Just be on the seventh floor around ten thirty. Costume party, Remus. Get creative. And get snacks!"

Lily waved before she set off towards the library again.

 _Well, at least it looks like I've found a new person to talk to, if not a friend. So much for Sev._

"Sirius, I'm sorry, I didn't know what to do!" Regulus was cowering under his brother's gaze. Sirius was, of course, nowhere near the Hufflepuff Common Room. As soon as his friends had left him alone for what they presumed was a romantic pursuit, he had taken off to the Slytherin Common Room to confront his dear little brother. The rage of that one day had simmered in him until he couldn't take it anymore- he had to talk to Regulus. So now here they were, standing behind a tapestry Sirius had picked right next to the dungeons. The cold, damp air was beginning to get to both of them, and Regulus shivered as he spoke.

"Please, Sirius, you know what it's like at home. Mother is always getting on me, asking me what exactly you do in school, and if you're still consorting with…"

"With the 'half-breed', right? Yes, I know. That is no reason for you to have joined Avery and the rest of those idiots. I know what it's like at home, I've been there longer than you have. I just wish you had the courage to stand up to them."

Regulus's young face crumpled under the weight of his brother's disapproval. He had somehow hoped that despite the events of that night, Sirius would be willing to understand, and they hardly ever got any time together at home anyway.

"You know I don't think that of your friends, Sirius. You know that. I really like them, and I wish I could be around them more, maybe…"

"You really think I would want the likes of you around my friends? I wouldn't wish you and your group of bullies on my worst enemy! Sure, go crying to mother, now, it's all you do anyway. You can tell her I told you off, it would only get me another of those burns anyway." Sirius rolled up his sleeve as he walked towards Regulus, showing ugly scars covering his forearms. "You know why I would never participate in what you did that night? I've been on the other end, Reg. Every single time the magnificent Walburga Black has ever had cause to take exception to me, she's burnt me with her wand. Do you think these marks will ever let me forget? You think I don't know what it's like at home? Do you have any idea what it was like to protect you from these when you were a child? If only you didn't give me cause to regret that."

"Sirius, I am so sorry, I didn't-" But Sirius had stormed out from the nook before Regulus could finish his sentence, leaving his brother crying behind the tapestry.

He strode along furiously, rubbing his arms absently, not looking where he was going until- CRASH!

He had bumped into someone, someone presumably carrying large amounts of what smelled like-

"Firewhiskey! What the hell are you up to, Ruthers? Did the fumes get to your head, or do you just generally not see past that enormous amount of hair-"

Toni was spluttering on the floor, her hair and clothes soaked in the Firewhiskey that had spilt from the shattered bottles, but it didn't take her long to recover.

"Shut up, Black, and help me up, if you could deign to touch a lowly Ravenclaw, that is-"

She ground to a halt when he picked her up surprisingly gently and set her on her feet. He siphoned off the alcohol from his own clothes and hers. He looked down at the bottles, uncharacteristically silent. He coughed to clear his throat, and tried valiantly to ignore exactly how Ruthers' hair fell over her shoulders and slid off them- "I'm sorry, Ruthers. My fault, wasn't looking where I was going."

Toni looked at Sirius' face and suddenly felt a pang for the boy. She had never seen him look so young, or even have his guard down around anyone else she knew. "Hey, are you alright, Black? Did I hurt your head there? Where's your usual stream of snark?" She smirked, moving towards him. She held out a bottle towards him. "Want a sip?"

"Here, in the corridors? Man, you Ravenclaws are worse than us! What if-"

"What if we got caught? Where's the fun without the thrill, eh, Black?" She had walked right up to him now, and she was close enough for Sirius to smell the lingering Firewhiskey on her, and the hint of something smokey. His head was beginning to swim just a little. _It's just the fumes_ , he told himself. It was the fumes, and the fight with Reg, and everything together, and the smell, and her beautiful eyes, damn, he'd forgotten how deeply dark they were-

"Black. Sirius, hey, snap out of it. What's wrong? Do you want me to walk you to the Common Room?" Toni was getting a little concerned now. She hadn't seen Black look this befuddled since, well, ever. Not even over the summer- _I can't think about that now. He looks like he really needs someone to be nice to him. Except I don't do nice_. "Hey, listen. Let's just sit down for a bit, yeah?" She took his arm and guided him to the nearest broom closet, quietly blasting a few spiders out of the way as she guided him in.

Putting the bottles down, she turned to him again, and put her hand on his knee. Uncharacteristically, Sirius flinched a little.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to put you off. Would you rather be alone? I can go." Toni got up to go and dusted off her skirt. Before she reached out for the door handle, however, he reached for her arm.

"Stay. Please." He looked up at her, and without a word, Toni knew. She sat next to him and held him while he shivered. After ages, he looked at her again, somewhat restored to his usual glib self, and attempted a shaky smirk.

"Thanks, Ruthers. I know it's difficult to resist my subtle charms, but hardly anyone's stayed this long in a broom closet filled with spiders for me before. Really helped with my-"

Toni's raised eyebrow was the only reply she decided to dignify this attempt with before she made her sally. "Well, Black, I'm all for letting bygones be bygones. Which is what the summer was, as you made absolutely clear to me. So let's not bring all of that up again."

"Why on earth would I want to, Ruthers? I only met you over the summer to relieve the tedious boredom of the great big Black household. That I got some snogging in is entirely to my credit, I believe."

"Believe what you would like to, Black. I'm out of here." Toni started to get up to storm out, but something was cramping her style.

 _What's wrong with me? I've never been unable to walk away before. Oh, it's his darned hand, still holding mine._

"Take your hands off me, Black."

"You really didn't have a problem with where my hands where a few months ago. One would think you'd have enjoyed the experience, most people beg for seconds, you know."

"UGH. You're an insufferable git. If only you weren't trying so hard to be such a spiffing arse all the time, you might even actually be-"

"Be what, Toni?" His voice dragged out the two syllables, filling the air around them with so much tension it seemed to crackle.

Toni leaned in, her eyes glinting. "Likeable, Black. Which you're not, and you're entirely hateful. Which is why I'm going to do this, and we're going to forget about what happens in here." Her lips met his, and swallowed his half- startled gasp whole before his hands rose to meet her waist. Hair ruffled, she pushed him away and grinned. "Just like we forgot about the summer." Sirius grinned at her before pulling her back to him, crushing her body against his.

"Where do you think Toni got held up? We need to really stow the bottles away before the others come out to the Common Room, I don't want to get caught!" Dina was pacing up and down the carpet of the Ravenclaw Common Room, occasionally stopping to take bites out of some cake on a nearby table.

 _I firmly believe the cake will help. Now if only the others could just be responsible; I can't even set up a party without things falling apart_.

Marl was huddled in one of the plush chairs she had Summoned while waiting for Lily and Toni to turn up. They had planned to have a party in a room Lily and Marl had discovered only last week, which mysteriously changed to meet their needs, even making subtle shifts to suit whoever happened on it, once outdoing itself by producing candy for Lily, and perfectly iced and sugared dark chocolate cake for Dina. It had even sprung a whole shelf of Quidditch magazines once Toni started frequenting the room.

"Listen, Di, it's fine. We still have more than an hour before people start coming out of their rooms to go to the Feast. You need to sit down, you're making me dizzy. Here, I'll cut you a piece of that myself."

Dina sat down next to her on the floor in a heap. "You know, Toni really worries me sometimes. All she had to do was get twelve bottles of Firewhiskey. It's not even a large party, you know, there's not reason I should do ALL of it on my own-"

"Now, Di, I know you take on a lot, but really, did you have to put in this much work? The Room does half of what we need anyway. As for the rest, all three of us have been helping you. Speaking of how large the party is, though, do you mind if we call the self-styled Marauders?"

"Um, yeah, sure, but they'll get their own food, right? I mean, there's already a lot of people…"

"Don't worry about it, Di. I went ahead and invited Remus and the gang, he said they'd get their food." Lily had just strolled in, fresh from the library, glowing from the heat indoors. She was also smirking, a sight unusual only to people who did not know her well-guarded propensity for pranks. "They're also going to be in… well, in surprising attire, I can wager."

"Oh, Lils, what did you do this time?" Marl got up to make space for her to sit.

"Well, Marl, Dina, all I did was misinform Remus just a little about the nature of the party. He's been told it's costumes only."

The three girls burst into peals of laughter. It was a very mild prank compared to the usual most students pulled off, but with the term they'd had so far, they needed the laugh sorely.

"Hi, everyone. I'm sorry I'm late, Di, what do you need me to do? I can help you carry up the food." Toni had burst into the Common Room, smoothing her hair into place.

Marl and Dina grinned at each other. "Ok, Marl, I'll go first," Dina said smugly as she scooted forward on the floor to where Toni had stopped her almost breathless run. "So, Toni, care to explain the reason for the delay?"

"I just got held up a bit near the Charms classroom, you know, James and that Pettigrew boy setting up something for Flitwick, I think, some sort of Halloween gift to him-"

"Now, Toni, I happen to know for a fact that James and Peter are at the moment quite busy laying one for McGonagall, so where were you really?" Lily chimed in, her chin resting on her palms, green eyes sparkling with this promise of fresh gossip.

"Come on, fess up, Toni. Why would you deprive your poor friends of boy gossip when you know how terribly desperate and sad the lives we lead are?"

Toni groaned and flopped on the floor next to Dina, maneuvering her head onto Dina's knee. "Fine, fine. I was with a guy. Some Hufflepuff I don't know very well, but he made eyes at me, and he was so fit, so we shared two bottles, and the next thing I knew-"

"You were in a broom closet, right? Explains the dirt on the corner of your skirt." Dina's eagle eyes had spotted the one place Toni had forgotten to dust off.

"Ugh, the skirt. There's always something, huh? Let's get to work on hauling the things to the Room, eh? I can see you raring to go, Dina."

"Oh, Toni, the boys will be there, thought you should know."

"Which boys?" Toni sat up, reaching for the leftovers of the cake on the table nonchalantly.

"Remus, Peter, James, and Sirius, Toni," said Lily exasperatedly, cleaning up the trail of crumbs Toni left with her wand. "Honestly, sometimes I don't know where your mind is."

Toni shrugged, careful not to look at any of them.

 _Suspicious behavior_ , Dina thought, making a note. She would want to see what that was about later. _Well, at least it's going to be an interesting party. Now if only I can stop imagining Remus dressed as a masked villain, I should get through it fine._


	8. Party Proper, Part I

Chap 8

" _No! I mean, I don't know, James…"_

" _Well, the two of you have always hit it off pretty well, you know. It's been around two years now that you've-"_

" _Almost dated, and never quite? Yes, I know, but he's so reluctant, it's almost as if he's not interested any more. I'm never sure of how to feel around him."_

 _James was quiet for a moment, as though he was weighing his words before he spoke them. When he did, it was with more gravity than usual._

" _Dina, you know, Remus is really not the easiest person to be with. I love him, but he has his sore points too, and he's exceptionally sensitive about them. It's very easy to rub him the wrong way."_

" _I've noticed." Dina sighed, looking over at James in the light their wands were casting. "I only wish I knew why he's so-"_

" _Volatile? You might not, Dina." James was quiet again, looking straight ahead as he walked next to her, leaving Dina to pursue the intriguing mystery that was Remus Lupin as she walked alongside him._

"James, did you see where I put that cloak of mine?" Remus was feverishly sorting through a heap of clothes, half-dressed in a costume that seemed somewhere between a tuxedo and…

"A hair shirt? Just what exactly are you wearing, Moony?" Sirius was lolling in one of the beds, his own sharply cut suit not in the least crumpled by his lazing about in it. He sat up now and ran his hand through his hair. "Not to say I don't enjoy this half out of bed look on you, but what exactly were you going for?"

"Lay off him, Pads," James interjected, seeing Remus breaking into rather uncharacteristic blushes. He knew this party must mean something to Remus, if he was taking this much of an effort to dress up. He usually just threw on a clean shirt, even when going to the most formal of parties, and his successful policy of melting into the walls at most gatherings ensured no one really cared. "What are you wearing, Peter?" He turned to Peter, who was scrounging in his closet for something to wear, hoping to divert some of Sirius' cruel attention away from Remus.

Peter turned to face them. "I don't know, you guys! I can't find anything at all that would suit me, and maybe I shouldn't have eaten that whole pie for lunch, my pants seem to be a little tighter-"

"Your pants are always just a little tighter, you Worm. And that's never going to stop you eating more of no matter what is served to you. Face it, your Animagus may as well have been a pig," Sirius said, looking away from Remus for a while. The four boys laughed, Peter giggling a tad uncomfortably. He really was worried about his clothes, and Marl was going to be there at the party, he wanted to look nice for her, but he must make sure the others never found out he was even thinking this, they would never ever let him live it down-

"So, who is it you're dressing for, Peter? And is that some red hair I see amongst your usual sandy locks?" Remus seemed to have sorted out his clothes, and was somewhat mawkishly joining in the fun as he adjusted his cloak that he had just transfigured to look like a dull gray pelt.

Peter blushed. "Well, I thought, you know, I'd go as David Bowie. I know he's only a Muggle musician, but I really like his music, and it seems perfect for Halloween, so," he halted, seeing the smiles on his friend's faces.

"Of course! That's what made your hair look like that. You've always been a bit of an idiot with Transfiguration. Wait, let me fix it." Led by James, the three boys swarmed on Peter, only moving away a considerable while later to admire the full effect of their spells.

"Space Oddity it is", grinned Sirius. "You'll outshine everyone at this damn party, Peter, even if you ditch that silver shirt and just go with the glorious hair."

"Why", exclaimed Remus, "he might just have better hair than you tonight, Pads!"

Toni was helping Lily and Dina lug the record player and some handpicked records to the seventh floor. As part of Dina's detailed plan, the record player had been Transfigured into a library book, but they had forgotten to account for the fact that the weight would remain the same, so Lily and Toni looked slightly ridiculous carrying a very large book between them.

"This is terrible, Dina. My hair is all out of whack, and by the time the cute boys turn up, I'll look like a real mess."

"Shut up, Toni. The sooner we get there, the better it will be for all of us. I can't wait to sink into one of those lovely plush chairs in the Room. Where's Marl, by the way?"

Dina looked up from consulting her trusty notebook. "I think she's still in the Gryffindor dorm, Lily. Last I spoke to her, she said she wanted to make a few adjustments to the way her hair looked. You know how she gets before parties, she has to look perfect."

"Well, it's not like you don't do it, you know," Toni twinkled at Dina. "I can see some special work went into that dress and the tights. Hoping to meet someone tonight, are we?"

Dina blushed, banishing images she'd been harbouring of a certain pair of green eyes hovering closer than they had been before. "Ugh, Toni. You know I like looking good at parties."

"Yeah, that's true, who knows when something, or someone comes along, eh?" Lily chimed in, making the girls laugh.

"Hey, you three!" Marl caught up to them, a flush suffusing her cheeks. She looked lovely, draped in a flowing pink skirt that flew around her ankles, and a white shirt that came up to her neck in a softly shaped collar, highlighting the blonde hair that curled down to her shoulders tonight, her bangs looking much more ordered than usual.

"You look lovely!" Dina gasped. "What happened to the hair?"

"Oh, you know," Marl preened and turned on her heel to show them the rest of her hair. "I cut it a little here and there, and then I used a little magic, and some Sleekeazy's. I just wanted to look pretty tonight, it's the first time I've really been looking forward to a party since-"

"Since you got rid of that louse, and good riddance that was. Dina, get the door, won't you?"

They'd reached the stretch of wall where the Room usually appeared, with Toni leading the way, Lily close behind her. Dina hurried forward and thought as hard as she could at the wall, _I need to you to be the room we need for the party tonight_. On her third try, the door appeared in the wall, and they hurried in to set up the room for the party.

In an hour or two, the Room had started filling up. There were some people occupying the plushies, and the two loveseats were already occupied by at least four couples. Dina could tell the punch had been spiked already- though that had probably been Toni, with those caskets of Gigglewater she'd procured from her trip to Florida with her parents. A general sense of well-being filled the room, and small groups of people had formed in the cozy corners of the Room. The room had gone one better than it ever had- though this probably was one of the larger parties ever held in it-it was filled with flashing lights, and bats made of fondant and licorice streaked across the walls at frequent intervals, just about slow enough for the slightly intoxicated people to catch them. The carved pumpkins had been enchanted to give off heat, and in a small closet to the left of the room, Dina had to check again to believe her eyes, a bunch of sleeping bags nestled with each other. She recognized them from the camping trip she had taken with her family the year before last, when sleeping bags and nights under the starlit sky had probably been her favourite part of the entire weekend. She reached across a particularly eager couple she didn't really recognize-probably Hufflepuffs in the year above her, they seemed vaguely familiar- to grab a cup so she could pour herself a glass of punch. Once she had it, she looked around the room, trying to find someone she could talk to, when-

"Hey, Dina! Long time no see, eh? How have you been?" An unpleasantly familiar, oily voice assaulted her, and Dina's heart sank just a little. _Not again_ , she thought.

"Hello, John. How have you been?"

John smiled widely at Dina. _John Pullman. I really thought I was rid of this one. I guess avoiding his company for an entire year wasn't a feasible plan after all_. She made a valiant effort to look at his eyes as he babbled something she could barely hear, but her gaze slid to his lips anyway, and she gulped visibly as a vivid memory of his lips heading towards her face surfaced with no regard for her distaste. She hurriedly looked away, and remembered she was still holding her glass. She downed it in one gulp.

"-so basically, I've been doing a lot of reading about what I told you the last time we met. You remember, Dina? I did some research on the workings of-"

"I'm sorry, John," she put her hand on his arm. "I'm feeling just a little dehydrated, so I'm just going to go get myself another drink, yeah? See you around?"

Having excused herself, she hurried off, scanning the room for a familiar face. _Damn all three of those idiots! Where ARE they?_

"James, I don't know about this-"

"Trust me, Evans. Halloween's always been pretty lucky for me." James was leading Lily by the hand, Lily much tipsier than he had ever seen her; he was barely able to believe his own luck. He'd wanted to talk to her since the first time he saw her on the platform, waiting to catch the train to Hogwarts, her red hair framing her anxious face. He still remembered the tentative way she had reached across to hug a smaller girl, who twisted away from her embrace, and the way her face had crumpled a little before she straightened up and walked away to talk to a skinny little boy. He didn't know then that her friend would become his- though Remus had laughed when he had first said it- his arch-nemesis. Or that he would grow to like her more and more as the years passed, and she developed a halting friendship with Sirius, and even spoke to him sometimes, when he wasn't being a total prat, of course. His train of thought was interrupted by a stream of giggles and then, a suspicious thud.

"Evans? Evans, where did you go? Evans- Lily?" He groped in the darkness until his hands found a wall. _Curse these eyes! Damn it, did she hurt herself?_

"Over here, Potter. Or should I call you James, since Halloween is so lucky for you?" Her hand reached out from the darkness and pulled him into an alcove. "Looks like some of your luck rubbed off on me today."

James blinked. He was suddenly in a room filled with strange, silver light. The alcove Lily had found had a large window framed by a sill large enough for two to sit on. The room was closed off from the rest of the party, and sounds of laughter and music only reached them faintly here. The night's light filtered in beautifully through the panes of the window, and he couldn't help but notice the way the light seemed to stick in the waves of her hair, making it look burnished, gleaming in the darkness of the room. Her face was lit up, the green silk shirt she was wearing making her eyes gleam. He realized with a start that she had pulled him into the alcove with a considerable amount of force, and the resulting stumble meant that he was now standing very close to her. He cleared his throat, but found that he had nothing whatsoever to say.

"Well, Potter? Cat got your tongue, has it? Isn't it just absolutely beautiful in here? I could just-"

"Stay here all night, right?" His tongue had finally unglued itself from the roof of his mouth, and he was glad that the first words out of his mouth were not a stream of nonsense. "You've got quite a talent for finding beautiful places, Evans."

"You have no idea. I have more to me than you know, Potter." She smirked at him and walked to the window, staring outside, framed by the light.

He walked closer to her, his breath trembling. "What don't I know about you, Evans? Your life seems pretty open to me. Model student, top grades, teacher's pet- why, the other day I thought Slughorn would have asked to go to Hogsmeade with you after your exceptional performance in Potions-"

"Oh, shut up, you insufferable prat. Don't pretend to know me because you've seen what I'm like in classes. Why do you think I'm friends with Sirius? Or has that remained a mystery your large head has been unable to penetrate so far?"

"I wasn't done talking, you know. You think I don't know of that quite brilliant prank you and your little group of girls pulled off last year. Exceptional, really, I don't think any of the Professors were able to figure out who had Charmed the coats of armour into letting out a string of obscenities instead of their usual Christmas Carols. I was quite surprised at the repertoire of curse-words they'd been supplied with until Pads told me he'd been asked to chip in there, even though the credit of the Charm, of course, goes to you lovely ladies." He was standing just behind her now, and he could vaguely see their reflection in the window. He noticed the gleeful expression on her face in it before she turned to face him, her supercilious smirk back in place.

"That's true. Even I have to admit that was quite well-handled. There's a whole other enjoyment to watching even the Professors stumped, though personally, I think Flitwick preferred the cursing to the usual caterwauling-" she abruptly stopped speaking, as if it was only just dawning on her how close James was standing to her.

"What are you up to, Potter?" She raised an eyebrow at him, the effect only slightly ruined by the fact that she drunkenly wobbled towards him as she said it. She'd never had much of a tolerance for Firewhiskey, and some of the punch had gone to her head as well.

"Nothing, Evans. How dare you accuse me of dastardly intentions when it's clearly you who's led me into a secret room- a room in another secret room, I might add!" James was smirking too now, his arms steadily supporting Lily as she tipsily swayed back and forth.

 _This is not the time to notice how strong he seems under that sweater, or how adorable those antlers look on him. Who dresses as a reindeer for Halloween anyway? Idiot._ She smiled at him again, a little more goofily this time. _God, stop it, Lily. His eyes twinkle under his glasses, but that is no reason to think about-_

Her thoughts skidded to a halt as he gently removed her hands from his sweater and led her to the window-sill. He sat her down, kneeling in front of her as he held her face.

 _I never knew he could be that tender. How did I never notice how long his fingers are? Must help to catch the Snitch, hahaha-_

"Are you ok, Lily? Do you need me to get you some water? Should I call Adams for you?" He was still holding her face, looking more concerned and kinder than she had ever seen him. She admitted to herself a little grudgingly that he looked almost sweet and even attractive, now that his usual arrogant smirk wasn't sprawling across his face. And she had never noticed how his hair always stood up on end. She shook her head to clear it, and reached out to ruffle his hair some more.

"Don't bother, Potter, I'm absolutely spiffing. Don't go get Dina, or anyone, they're probably enjoying the party." _There, I sound as sensible as usual_ , she thought assertively before she swayed alarmingly, almost falling off the sill.

"Ok, I'm not going anywhere. Just sit up, will you? Put your head on my shoulder if you need to." James had moved to the sill, sitting next to her, cradling her head into his shoulder. She looked up at him, and saw that he was looking at her with something in his eyes that she didn't quite understand, but it made her feel warm.

She never quite remembered who went in for the kiss first. She just remembered thinking as she sank into it, _I hope Dina's found someone to spend the party with_ , before all thought of Dina was banished from her head.


End file.
